Nokia looking for new chief executive

Reports claim Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo could be out in under a month

Kallasvuo has lost the confidence of investors, says Gartner

Nokia has started its search for a new chief executive after failing to make up ground against upstarts such as Android and the Apple iPhone, according to reports in The Wall Street Journal.

The firm believes that current chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo is " struggling", and has failed to "find traction for the company in the market for high-end smartphones", the report said.

"They are serious about making a change,'' the paper said, adding that Nokia board members are "supposed to make a decision by the end of the month".

V3.co.uk asked Nokia for comment, but had not had a response at the time of writing. In the meantime, other than the fact that it is readying to publish its financial results later this week, the firm's press department is silent.

Nick Jones, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner, speculated on the report, saying that if it proves to be fact, Nokia is making a wise move. However, he added that the company may struggle to find the chief it really needs.

"My feeling is that Kallasvuo has lost the confidence of investors, and a change would be the best thing for Nokia. The problem Nokia faces is finding a European Steve Jobs to replace [him]," Jones said.

"The new chief executive needs the experience to run a company the size of Nokia, the charisma to pacify investors, the knowledge to recognise bad products and strategies, and the courage to kill them."

Nokia's smartphone business has taken a knock recently and, while the Motorola Droid X sold out almost instantly in the US, for example, the Finnish company is not seeing the same successes.

A blog post on Nokia's site earlier this month asked users whether they were planning on staying within its handset family, or moving elsewhere. Perhaps embarrassingly for the firm, 61 per cent of those who responded were already using, or planning to use, an Android phone.

A YouGov survey in June confirmed this trend, suggesting that the dominance the firm once had is slipping through its fingers.

"The results of our data consistently show that the market leader is fast becoming an also-ran in the smartphone market. New products, software and apps are needed soon if Nokia is to keep up with its rivals," said Russell Feldman, research manager for YouGov's technology and telecoms team, at the time.

Nokia is expected to release its financial results at the end of this week.